Highlights

CSDs continue to consider Fintech developments

Throughout 2016, the impact of distributed ledger technology (DLT) on CSD settlement continued to be a hot topic. ECSDA members debated the issue on several occasions and, on 2 September, the association issued a short paper on DLT in response to an ESMA consultation.

The paper considers the importance of sound governance and oversight to allow DLT-based solutions to improve the way securities markets operate without endangering financial stability. It remarks that new types of market players using DLT will not always “fit” within the definitions of existing EU regulations such as the CSDR and EMIR and it insists that the performance of regulated services should abide by existing regulatory requirements.